Total Yoga

This is an excellent starter, with helpful pictures, clear instructions, and lots of great suggested "routines." It's especially helpful that the book is large has a spiral-bound spine so the pages stay open. You can have it at your side as a reference while you do the poses.

This book is an excellent source for creating your own yoga program. It has great descriptive pictures and good routines. It doesn't replace a beginner taking a class from a good instructor (no book can do this), but it is a good source for follow-up exercise on your own.

This is an excellent foundational work for beginning yoga enthusiasts and practitioners. The basics are discussed at great length. For instance, Kriya yoga is action-based. Sahaya is spontaneous practice of the art and Viniyoga consists of a series of fluid movements aimed at deep relaxation and concentration. The Vinyasa Ashtanga emphasize synchronous breathing techniques to promote health and well-being. The practice of yoga even extends to food; whereas, the sattvic are considered to be wholesome foods as opposed to processed foods. The basic postural elements of yoga are explained. For instance, the easy posture or leg fold is demonstrated pictorially together with the more advanced forms. This work is excellent if you are a beginner. It explains all the techniques in simple English with diagrams depicting the various motional dimensions of yoga. It is a good value for the price charged.

I agree with the previous reviewer that the book is well-designed. The spiral notebook spine makes it perfect for laying out while you practice. Everything is illustrated with photos, including blow-ups/close-ups for the more complicated aspects of the asanas. I also enjoy the fact that routines for all age groups, levels of mastery, and states of health (e.g., menopausal and pregnant) are listed with clear, easy-to-follow directions. In short, the book is a great guide for beginners and experts alike looking to try yoga or refresh their memory in the absence of an instructor.My only caveat is that if you are looking for a blend of the spiritual/metaphysical/philosophical aspect along with the physical aspect of yoga, you will definitely not get it here. The yoga in this book is presented in a very Western, I daresay clinical fashion. The philosophy is implied or sprinkled throughout only to be glossed over, since you can't get into this much detail about yoga without making a few references, however fleeting, to the "other side" (non-physical) of yoga. Any persons who are new to yoga and fear any of the "brain washing" aspects from philosophical indoctrination (which I think is a bogus notion to begin with) need not fear any of that here. The book is very good, low price or not, and thorough in many respects - all the ones most beginners will be concerned with - but it doesn't quite merit the "total" part of its title.

I don't know why all yoga books that show poses aren't all made like this. This one has a spiral binding and it lies flat so you can see it while you practice. There are photos of each pose, often two or three photos on the page that show you the way you should move into the pose. The photos are large and can easily be seen as you practice. In the back of the book are several suggested practices that put the poses together. This book focuses far more on the poses than on the underlying philosophy, the branches of yoga, etc. This is a great book to practice with, the best of its kind. And the price is very reasonable for such a quality book--it's an excellent value.